Online Schools

Campus Schools

Iowa Counties

There are ninety-nine counties in Iowa. The first two counties, Des Moines County and Dubuque County,
were created in 1834 when Iowa was still part of the Michigan Territory. In preparation for Michigan's
statehood, part of Michigan Territory was formed into Wisconsin Territory in 1836]. Two years later, the western
portion was split off to become Iowa Territory. The south-eastern part of Iowa Territory became Iowa, the 29th
state in the union, on 28 December 1846, by which point 44 Counties had been created. Counties continued to be
created by the state government until 1857, when the last county, Humboldt County, was created.

Wayne County, Iowa

Wayne County Education, Geography, and History

WayneCounty is a county located in the state of Iowa. Based on the 2010 census, the
population was 6,403, making it the fifth-least
populous county in Iowa. Wayne County was created on
January 13, 1846. The countyseat is Corydon.
The county is named in honor of Anthony Wayne
(1745–1796), an American Revolutionary War general.

Etymology - Origin of Wayne County Name

Wayne county is named for Anthony Wayne,
an American Revolutionary War general.

Demographics:

Wayne County History

Wayne County was established on
January 13, 1846 and was formally organized on February 13, 1851. The county is
named after General "Mad Anthony" Wayne, of the Revolutionary War.

Wayne County is unusual in that it is one of the few Iowa counties to have had
only one county seat, Corydon. Corydon has had more than one name however.
Originally called Springfield, the name Corydon was chosen by County Judge Seth
Anderson, who won the right to name the town in a poker game. He named it after
his hometown of Corydon, Indiana.

The first "courthouse" was built in 1852. It was a hastily built log cabin and
was used even before it was completed. The floor was laid down loosely, the
walls were not chinked and half of the roof was unfinished. The judge's desk was
an old keg, and the jury would go to the slough or ravine to decide cases. This
building was used for four years. Then, in 1856, William F. Lancaster and John
Davis built a small building to use as a courthouse at a cost of $600. When this
building was abandoned by the county in 1871, the business of the county was
conducted in various downtown buildings.

Several attempts were made to vote bonds for a new courthouse between 1869 and
1889, but all failed. Around this time the town of Allerton became a contender
for the county seat. Finally, with the help of people favorable to Corydon, a
subscription was started in 1890 to build a new courthouse. Around $19,000 was
raised, and construction began on the new courthouse in 1891. The contractors
were E. A. Rea and Alex Mardis. The courthouse was made of red brick that was
made and burned at Corydon.

After nearly 73 years of service, the courthouse was declared unsafe by a grand
jury. A $450,000 bond issue was approved in September of 1962 by the voters in a
special election for a new courthouse. The new courthouse was designed by the
architects Frankhiser and Hutchens and was built by Grabau Construction. A
ceremony for the laying of the cornerstone was held on August 15, 1964, and the
new courthouse was finished later that same year. It is a three-story, modern
looking facility and lies just east of the previous one.

Source: Burton, Warren, History Of Wayne County, Iowa, 1956

Geography: Land and Water

As reported by the Census Bureau, the county has a total area of 527 square miles (1,360 km2), of which 525 square miles (1,360 km2) is
land and 1.7 square miles (4.4 km2) (0.3%) is water.